Last Friday, Justice Nancy Mills threw out 46 of the 59 charges Strong was facing in connection with the Kennebunk prostitution case.

Prosecutors then appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, which ruled on Monday that Mills could decide whether to proceed with the trial on the remaining 13 counts, while it considered the state's appeal.

In a hearing Tuesday morning, Mills ruled she would not separate the charges, putting the entire trial on hold.

Jury selection had been on hold since last week, while the courts dealt with the appeals and motions from the prosecution and defense.

The pool of potential jurors in Strong's case will be retained until the end of February.

If Strong's trial resumes before then, jury selection will continue with the current crop of potential jurors.

If the state supreme court ruling comes later than March 1, the entire jury-selection process will start again from scratch.

Court officials said lawyers have narrowed the current jury pool to 23 potential jurors.

On Tuesday, Justice Mills also admonished Strong's defense team for making comments to the press.

She told defense lawyer Dan Lilley that his displayed conduct that was unbecoming of an attorney.

No word on when the state supreme court will rule on the appeal, but prosecutors have asked for at least one more week to re-label evidence for the defense.

Alexis Wright, who is facing 106 charges in connection with the case, is not expected to stand trial until later this year.